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World FTD Awareness Week 2024 occured last week, September 22-29, 2024.
In recognition of the week, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson signed a proclamation officially recognizing FTD Awareness Week in Chicago. Thank you to Amy Bouschart (photographed above with the Mesulam Center's Darby Morhardt, PhD, LCSW), whose husband participates in Northwestern Mesulam Center research, for leading the charge in this recognition!
“FTD is vastly underdiagnosed due to lack of awareness among the general public and clinicians, therefore, the need for these public awareness campaigns, resolutions and proclamations,” said Morhardt. “Our clinic has always seen a fairly steady number of people living with FTD, but we are a specialty clinic where people find us eventually after seeing two to three physicians or more, and living with a lot of confusion, anxiety and uncertainty often for years before they get an accurate diagnosis.”
The Mesulam Center has long been a leader in FTD diagnosis, treatment, research and care. Learn more about our care and support offerings here.
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Discussing Personal Connections with FTD
[1 minute watch]
In recognition of World FTD Awareness Week, the Mesulam Center's Sandra Weintraub, PhD sat down with Emma Heming Willis to discuss personal connections she has made through her work with FTD.
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Save the date for the 31st Annual Alzheimer Day, taking place on Thursday, May 15, 2025 in the Feinberg Pavilion Conference Center on Northwestern University's Chicago campus.
Northwestern Alzheimer Day was established to showcase Alzheimer's related dementia and aging research conducted throughout Northwestern and to bring this information to the community. Attendees will have the opportunity to connect with community members and researchers over lunch and through the presentation of research posters.
More information about event registration, abstract submissions, and sponsorship opportunities will be available on in coming months.
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The Alzheimer's Association Illinois Chapter hosts a Caregivers and Professionals Research Symposium every year in November to honor National Family Caregivers Month – a time to celebrate the contributions of caregivers, increase their awareness and connect them with information and resources. This year's symposium is taking place on Friday, November 8 in the Feinberg Pavilion Conference Center.
The Mesulam Center's Darby Morhardt, PhD, LCSW, is serving on the planning committee, in addition to presentations by Ian Grant, MD and Allison Lapins, MD. Staff members from the Mesulam Center will also be present at the vendor fair.
Registration is now open! Learn more and register below.
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South Loop Memory Cafés
The South Loop Village Memory Cafés are free in-person and virtual monthly social gathering for persons living with dementia and their family, friends, and care partners. View upcoming virtual and in-person meeting dates.
October Theme: Ghosts, Ghouls, & Goblins
In-Person: Thursday, October 10, 1–2 PM
Virtual: Tuesday, October 22, 2–3 PM
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Music, Movement, & Community
Lorenzo's House presents Music Movement & Community, a free, in-person interactive experience where music and expression ignite joy. This is an inclusive and stimulating learning environment of personal connection and fun for families living with younger-onset dementia. Learn more here.
Upcoming Sessions:
Wednesdays, October 2 and October 16 at Bright Star Church Sanctuary
Questions can be sent to mmc@lorenzoshouse.org.
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Non-Neuron Brain Cells Produce a Third of Amyloid Plaque in Alzheimer’s Disease
[7 minute read]
An international team of investigators, including Robert Vassar, PhD, Director of the Mesulam Center, have discovered that oligodendrocytes contribute approximately one-third of plaque formation alongside neurons in mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease, according to a recent study published in Nature Neuroscience.
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FAQs About Alzheimer's and Related Dementias
[11 minute watch]
Want to learn more about Alzheimer's and related dementias? Northwestern Medicine's Ian M. Grant, MD, behavioral neurologist, and Jennifer M. Woodward, MD, geriatrician answer some commonly asked questions.
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